Hawksmoor, the renowned London steakhouse, will debut in the U.S. as the flagship restaurant at Three World Trade Center in late 2017. Regularly hailed as London's best steak restaurant, Hawksmoor will occupy a 14,000-square-foot space in the Richard Rogers-designed tower, anchoring the forthcoming retail and dining district under development in Lower Manhattan.
Founded in 2006 by childhood friends Will Beckett and Huw Gott, later joined by long-time customer-turned executive chef Richard Turner, Hawksmoor was built on a childhood memory of how good steak could taste. The result was a restaurant that changed steakhouse standards and became a central part of London's emergence as one of the best places to eat in the world over the last decade, winning numerous Best Restaurant/Bar awards from national newspapers and magazines. Hawksmoor celebrates beef from traditionally reared cattle and old-school cocktails with an unwavering passion for standards and hospitality. The team will be bringing this obsession with flavor and ethics, which has seen it rated as one of the most sustainable restaurants in the U.K. by the Sustainable Restaurant Association (and the only steak restaurant to have a maximum three-star rating), to the U.S. Hawksmoor will seek out the best American farms to source its beef and other farm-fresh ingredients.
"From the very beginning, Huw and I have been inspired by New York's great restaurants and bars," Beckett says. "The opportunity to open a restaurant in one of the city's most important landmarks is thrilling and humbling all at once. It is also the biggest challenge we've ever had, but we hope that if we can bring our passion for sourcing, standards, ethics and hospitality to the restaurant we can become a long-lasting part of New York's amazing restaurant scene."
Since opening its first London restaurant in 2006, Hawksmoor quickly became one of the U.K.'s top restaurants, steakhouse or otherwise. The New York restaurant menu will feature many of the culinary elements that define Hawksmoor, including “dictionary thick” cuts of carefully sourced beef, such as T-bone and bone-in Prime Rib, and signature English dishes such as Potted Beef & Bacon with Yorkshires, Beef Dripping Chips, and Clams & Braised Trotters.
Known as much for cocktails as it is for steak, Hawksmoor's cocktails include classic drinks such as Harry Craddock's Marmalade Cocktail (featuring homemade marmalade with gin, Campari, lemon juice, and orange bitters), and its own creations such as Shaky Pete's Ginger Brew (with gin, homemade ginger syrup, lemon juice, and London Pride bitter), and Full-Fat Old Fashioned (a simple mix of butter-infused bourbon, demerara sugar, and bitters).
Hawksmoor will be a cornerstone of the Westfield World Trade Center's retail district in Lower Manhattan. The 16-acre development is redefining the Financial District with its global collection of dining, fashion and culture. William Hecht, Westfield Corporation U.S. chief operating officer, says, "One of Westfield's hallmarks is our commitment to exceptional dining, and we could not be more delighted that Hawksmoor has chosen to have their first U.S. location with us. Westfield World Trade Center will be an unparalleled destination for the vast community of professionals, locals and visitors who are defining the resurgences of Lower Manhattan, and we look forward to introducing the superb Hawksmoor offering to them."
